The Missing Links
by Mojotheomegawolf
Summary: A story that helps to fill the gaps that the movie left unfilled. Rating may change to T later.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Comforts **

The low clouds, heavy from prolonged condensational build up, blocked out the meager moon causing the already dark night sky to become as thick and black as the ink from a pen. There was wind on this night, strong wind that roared aggressively over the land and made the canopies of the many trees sing with the rhythm of the raging storm, breathing deeply with its ominous intake. The rain that fell was carried lightly on the wind, blowing in at acute angles as it journeyed swiftly from the sky to the ground, hitting in a cascade of little droplets. The rain immediately wet everything that it touched, bleeding through the canopy of the forest to the ground and turning the dry grain dirt into slippery, soggy mud. Shallow rivets and holes that lay imbedded in the clay became small streams or puddles of water and everywhere could be heard the sound of thunder as it clapped hostilely after each persistent flash of lightning. The bolts of electricity would illuminate high in the sky and briefly make the land as bright as day and then would disappear just as quickly as they had come, throwing the world into darkness yet again. The earth seemed dead, desolate in the presence of this storm, all forms of life absent from the open spaces as it raged, daring any to come out and challenge it. However, despite the violent storm and the desolation of the Idaho wilderness, life prevailed.

Watching from the security of a freshly made den, just large enough to spend the night in comfortably, were two lupus canines, the male of the pair lying alone toward the back where he hoped to keep dry. However, the female of the two seemed restless. The anxious amber furred she-wolf sat near the mouth of the little makeshift den and watched the storm with great anticipation. She had an unimaginable amount of trouble on her mind at present: the storm hindering their progress, the impending war that waited for her at home, the wolf that she would be forced to marry, and she thought about her grey companion in the back of the den and the predicament that she now found herself in as a result of the thoughtless act that he had committed. She didn't know what to think about him, for her thoughts were so conflicting that they were in no way close to conclusive as to how she should feel or what she should do at the given moment. She was still slightly bitter at the fact that he had practically ruined their chances of getting home and over something as asinine as a little cupcake; but she was also in light that she now owed him her life. She knew that if it were not for his unwavering desire to follow after her, even after she had just left him alone in the rain, and his valiance in dangerous situations, she would have died a quite horrible death in that gorge. For that she would be eternally grateful; but as she forced that problem away from her mind, her thoughts settled upon something else, an old wound that lay so deep inside she felt as though it would never heal. Nearly all of her forethought now revolved around one thing in particular; one old memory that always crept into her mind on nights like this, when the world seemed to cry for her. She sighed deeply, subconsciously, as she thought back on the memory that she so desperately wished to forget. She flattened her ears against her skull and closed her eyes slightly as she pictured his face, young and free and innocent. She could still see him smiling up at her, could still hear his laughter, and she felt as though she could still smell his scent through the rain, though she knew that it was impossible.

"Kate?" she heard from behind her, the voice belonging to her male counterpart.

Said wolf pricked her ears into attention when she heard the sound and turned behind her, finding the male to be sitting up on his haunches and regarding her inquisitively with his deep aqua eyes.

"Kate, why don't you rest," he said softly, "you've had a long day."

Kate said nothing and simply turned her head back to the front, returning her attention to the storm. The grey male sighed in defeat and lowered his head slightly, letting his ears droop limply above his skull, and then rose to his feet. He waited for a brief moment, contemplating whether or not he should approach his friend, and after a span of a couple dozen seconds he slowly made his way over to her side, arriving wordlessly and taking a seat left of her. For a long while the two simply sat, watching through the thick film of drips that fell from the top lip of the den, the ever-present rain as it pounded the earth outside. The grey male could sense the pain that his amber companion felt, but he didn't know how to approach such a delicate subject, for he knew what it was that troubled her so. He fumbled quietly with his paws as he thought, trying to think of exactly the right thing to say. Multiple ideas popped into his head, but just as he would have something that he could build on, he would trash the idea and find something else to say. The silence droned, the only sounds being that of the storm outside and the soft, slow rhythm of the pair's breathing.

"You miss him don't you," the grey wolf finally stated, his voice low and his tone deep.

Kate sighed and let her head fall slowly, closing her eyes in an attempt to fight back the tears that stung her eyes. The grey wolf saw this and he laid a gentle paw on her shoulder, silently encouraging her to speak.

"It- it was so long ago, but it feels like it happened yesterday," Kate said sadly, her voice choked to the slightest of degrees by the tears.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked as he slowly rubbed her shoulder, even though he already knew the story.

Kate didn't answer. She only turned her head forward and let it hang low to her chest.

"Come on, Kate," the grey male said comfortingly, "It will help if you talk about it."

Kate sniffled and took a long, collective breath before slowly lifting her head up and opening her teary eyes.

"I miss him more than you could even imagine," she mused sadly, "even though it's been almost a year since the accident, I still can't help but remember, and when I do it breaks my heart because I know that I could've prevented it."

The grey male turned Kate's face to his with his paw, but she jerked away.

"Kate, look at me," he pleaded softly and turned her face to him again.

He stared deep into her watery, amber eyes for a long moment, almost as though he were trying to alleviate Kate's anguish with his gaze.

"You can't blame yourself for what happened to Jake," he said to her firmly, "you were only a pup."

Kate bit back a sob when she heard his name.

"B-ut I was supposed to look after him," she whined miserably, "if I had only done as mom and dad told me and not left him all alone in the den, he would still be alive."

The grey male pulled her into a comforting hug, wrapping his forelegs protectively about her shoulders.

"You had a moment of weakness, Kate, that's all," he said softly to her, "what pup wouldn't want to go play in the river with their friends?"

Kate sniffled.

"But what kind of big sister leaves her two week old brother alone and unattended in her parents' den?" she asked in rebuff.

The grey male released his grip on her and extended his arms out so that he still held her, something that he had always wanted to do, and could look her in the face.

"Kate, kids do stupid things," he said to her, "regardless of who they are or what they are told. Accidents are bound to happen."

Kate just couldn't hold back her tears anymore and she erupted into a fit of hysterical crying.

"Bu-ut m- my d-is-obid-ia-ance g-got J-Jake killed," she choked between her sobs, "a-nd I-'ve had t-to li-ive with that for m-y entire l-ife."

"Kate, nobody would've ever expected something like that to happen," he condoled, "It was a freak accident that nobody had any control over."

Kate tried to arrest her tears, but all she managed to do was throw herself into a fit of short and choppy gasps as she tried to breath.

"B-ut I c-ould- have save-d him," she argued through her gasps.

"You don't know that for sure," he replied, patting the back of her neck, "your presence would not have stopped your parents' den from collapsing, and if you and Lilly had been there you would have died as well."

"Bu-ut w-hy was-s-s it him-m?" she asked miserably, "wh-what did he-e do to deser-erve to die?"

The male again pulled her into his body and this time Kate broke down and buried her face into the fur on his chest.

"I can't answer that Kate," he condoled, gently stroking the back of her neck, "it was just his time to go."

"But it's not fair!" Kate suddenly yelled, pulling her face away from Humphrey and glaring back at him with bloodshot eyes, "He was too young to die!" she screamed, her voice loud enough to drown out the thunder from the storm, "He had only just opened his eyes that morning!"

The grey male pulled her in closer to his body and allowed her to cry into his shoulder, once again stroking the back of her neck with his gentle paw.

"Shh, Kate I know," he whispered, continuing to rub her neck, "I know."

Kate could not explain why, but she felt so... safe, so secure in his arms, almost as though his body was absorbing all of the pain from hers, almost as though with each gentle brush of his paw over the back of her neck, her sorrow was brushed away like a thin layer of sand being swept softly away by the wind from the face of a rock. His scent, a mixture of pine and musk, seemed to put her at ease, and before she could even begin to realize what she was doing, she began to indulge herself in his chest, losing herself in heaven as his warm fur radiated so softly against her face, as the steady rhythm of his heartbeat pounded so soothingly against her cheek, as his warm scent so pleasantly wafted into her nostrils.

Each brush seemed to sooth her further, as the male could feel, for the longer she remained in his arms, the more and more her muscles loosened up until finally, she felt as though completely relaxed, but despite the state of easement that her body was in, tears still rolled down her face, though now they snaked slowly through the fur on her cheeks.

Kate sniffed and buried her face deeper into the fur on his chest, almost as though trying to bury herself completely into his body, and as her face brushed slowly against his soft fur, all of her tears were wiped away.

The male, now realizing that her fit was nearly over, squeezed her tightly against his chest for a moment then slowly loosened his grip, extending his arms so that she was once again held at a distance from his body and so that he may look upon her eyes once again.

As she was separated from his body, Kate slowly lifted her head and once her eyes settled upon her companion, she allowed the most meager of smiles to tug at the corners of her mouth.

"Feeling better?" he asked her gently, mirroring her smile with one of his own.

Kate sniffled and used the side of her paw to wipe the stray tears from her face and nodded.

"Well I'm glad," he began, "no more cryi-"

His sentence was cut short when he felt her lips press firmly against his, and for a moment, his entire body became stiff, as this was a complete surprise to him, but after a matter of a few seconds, his initial shock wore off, his body relaxed, and he did what his mind so loudly screamed at him to do; he allowed his lips to become firm against hers and kissed her back. He melted at this point, feeling his heart beginning to race, feeling his spirit beginning to soar, for this right here was all he had ever wanted, all he had ever needed.

After about ten seconds, Kate pulled away from the kiss and stared at him with a smile.

"Thank you," she said to him.

His eyes slowly opened as they separated, fearing that he would wake up to find it all to be a dream, but when his eyes settled upon Kate, he knew that this was real.

He smiled.

"Don't mention it," he replied, masking his blush with his grin.

Kate's smile broadened and she gave him a quick hug then turned away.

"Come on, Humphrey," she said to him, "let's get some sleep. We have a long road ahead of us."

Humphrey was still in the throes of shock, but nodded and slowly began to follow, though his knees struggled to support his weight so shaky were they from the joy he had experienced, and as Kate curled herself up against the wall of the den, he knew that she was going to be his forever...

-/

Chapter 2 will be out just as soon as possible. Like what you saw? Don't be afraid to leave a comment. Didn't like what you saw? Don't be afraid to leave a comment. All feedback is crucial in the business of writing.


	2. Chapter 2

Their voices blended harmoniously in such a way that made the heavens weep and put angels to shame so beautiful was the song that the pair sung. It was truly a remarkable spectacle- an alpha and an omega, two polar opposites, forbidden from love since the beginning of time, howling together to the moon that they had shared separately for so long. The pair's voices rose to a zenith, Kate hitting a high note which blended perfectly with the low pitch that Humphrey sung in a chord which would eventually fade out and finally bring their song to a close.

As the last notes reached a decrescendo and finally faded out completely, the two opened their eyes and turned to face each other, Humphrey gazing upon Kate with a huge smile spread across his face.

"See?" he asked her enticingly, "that wasn't so bad now was it?"

Kate did not know what to say, for she could not believe what had just occurred. In the heat of the moment following their near miss with a group of ravenous bears, she turned her nose to the sky and howled alongside an omega, something that she swore she would never do, for law strictly forebode such actions.

But despite the rationalist controlling her mind which told her that she was a disgrace to all of wolfkind for what she had just done, there was a flutter coming from whatever controlled her heart the likes of which she had felt only one other time before, when Humphrey comforted her the previous night. She did not know how to explain what she was feeling and it almost made her sick, only this sickness was not of disgust, or revulsion, but of a certain sensation that she felt in the deepest depths of her stomach, almost as though she had a million butterflies beating about inside of it. What could this all mean? Why is it that she felt this way? What was wrong with her?

She pondered these thoughts thoroughly, drawing up a number of potential answers as to why, but the one that stuck out to her the most was also the one that she had most dreaded.

Was it possible that she had fallen for him?

All of these thoughts she had constructed and sorted out in a matter of only a few seconds and she focused intently upon Humphrey, finding that as her eyes met his, the fluttering in her heart and in her stomach intensified.

"No," she answered softy, slowly for she was still in the process of trying to make sense out of all of this, "it was... actually... pretty amazing."

Humphrey's smile broadened and he felt his heart begin to flutter as well, something that he felt any time Kate's name was even spoken and became nearly unbearable every time he was in her presence.

"You really think so?" he asked her with excitement, the tip of his tail beating back and forth behind his body.

Kate, however, could not return such emotions of elation, for she was still laced in confusion and denial.

No, it was not possible that she had fallen in love with him, she tried to reason in her head, she was just... shaken up a bit, nervous because she had just broken another of the Sacred Laws, making that two violations in a matter of forty-eight hours. She just needed a minute to settle herself was all; a quick breather and she would be right as rain.

But then... why was it that she could not look upon him without feeling the peculiar sensation she felt grow stronger?

"Yes," she replied, though distantly.

Humphrey picked up on this and began to feel a weight settle upon him, almost making him regret having talked her into howling with him.

"Is everything okay?" he asked her hesitantly, for he feared her response.

"Huh?" Kate asked, for she had once again drifted away into the recessions of her mind, and lifted her head to him, but once his question registered, she nodded, "oh yeah," she replied quickly then slowed herself down, "I'm just a little bit tired is all," she lied, "bit of a long day, ya know?"

"Yeah," Humphrey replied, doing his best to conceal his cognizance of her lie, "it certainly was, that." he paused and looked down at his paws for a moment then lifted his eyes to Kate once again, "if- if you need to take a short nap, feel free," he told her, "I'll keep an eye on things for you and wake you up when we get to Jasper."

"You sure?" Kate asked him, "I mean, aren't you tired too?"

"Nah," Humphrey replied with an exaggerated sideways roll of his head, "are you kidding? My blood is still pumping from escaping those bears, how could I possibly sleep?"

Kate could tell that he was hiding something, but dared not press the envelope any further and allowed a false smile to form upon her lips.

"Alright," she said to him, "guess I'll be seeing you in a bit."

She rose to her paws and moved until she was near the stacks of hay against the wall of the train then began to lay herself down.

"Goodnight," she said to him as she laid her head down and closed her eyes.

"Goodnight," Humphrey replied, and once he was certain that her eyes had closed, he allowed his smile to slowly fade from his face and promptly replaced it with a look of distain.

His eyes remained fixed upon Kate for a matter of about three minutes and then he allowed them to move away, but even though his eyes were no longer on her, she remained on his mind, and as he turned away from her, taking his seat near the opened side of the train car, he allowed a sigh to pass over his lips as he watched the landscape roll steadily past.

Though Kate lay perfectly still on the floor, sleep eluded her, for her thoughts were far too loud to ignore or silence, and it seemed that the harder she tried to force them away, the louder they screamed. She took in a deep breath, and released it quickly, expressing her discomfort, and this breath caught Humphrey's ear, causing him to turn to her, but he did not speak, for he did not wish to disturb her further. His eyes remained fixed upon her for a moment and then he turned away from her.

For the better part of an hour he sat motionless before the opening of the train car, watching the land as it steadily rolled by, but it all seemed to pass by as spirits pass through the night, and then finally he laid himself down, though sleep would not come for another half hour or so and was even then achieved accidentally. He found, however, that sleep did not allow him to escape his inner turmoil, for as soon as he slipped into the third stage of sleep, his dreams were of Kate and of the beautiful moment that they shared earlier that evening. The scene seemed to play on a loop through his mind. He could remember everything, every note, every sweet imperfection that still blended so perfectly with the other, every single smile the two shared as they sang their song to the moon that seemed to smile upon them from above. It was almost as an ordinance, or at least that was how he saw it, and this in turn brought pressing questions to mind.

Should he be forward with Kate about how he felt about her, or should he simply remain quiet and hope for the best, because, after all, he had not a clue as to if she even felt the same way about him.

But then again, the scene came back to mind and he was quick thereafter to make his decision, for he could not bring himself to believe that there was any other way she could feel. After all, she howled at the moon with him.

"Just do it," he told himself as he slept, "she howled at the moon with you..."


	3. Chapter 3

Howling and cheering rose and fell intermittently in the distance, reaching Humphrey's ears just enough to be audible, only to die slowly away as a voice, to him barely louder than a mutter, spoke up above the crowd, and when it would finish, the cheers and howls would rise again, often times even louder than those that had risen previously. Humphrey knew as he watched from afar, perched alone upon a hill, that the occasion was a joyous one, after all, the packs were going to be united in less than twenty-four hours, but how could he feel happiness when his heart had been ripped out of his chest and crushed before his very eyes? And whose paw was it that now held the broken remnants of his once merry heart? Kate- the no good... ungrateful... bitch who had absolutely no regard for anything that had happened between them on their journey back to Jasper. Forget the fact that she had kissed him after he saved her life and helped her in her episode of woe, no that never happened, and they must have never howled together last night either. No. Apparently that was all part of his **** imagination! He growled softly under his breath, but then sighed, for what was the point in getting angry over something that he could not control, nor change? He lowered his head, closed his eyes, and allowed his ears to fold flat against the top of his skull then turned away, for he could not stand to look at the scene any longer. Slowly he rose and turned his body then began to walk with no real destination in mind just so long as it was somewhere far enough away that he would not have to see this anymore. With his head held low to his chest, he began his descent down the face of the hill, but about half way down, the sound of flapping wings penetrated his ears, tempting them away from his skull, and caused him to open his eyes.

He needed not look up to see who it was that approached, for who else could it be besides the goose and the duck who helped him get home? He scowled, for he wanted nothing more than to be left alone at the moment, and right now the last thing he needed was to be questioned about what was going on and why he wasn't down in the valley with Kate.

"Bonjour, my furry friend, we've been looking all over for you," Marcel greeted, landing before him.

"Salutations, sir," Paddy stated warmly, landing beside the goose

"Hey, guys," Humphrey replied flatly, for he knew that he could not be rid of them, "what brings you here?"

"I think the question to ask is what brings _you _here?" Marcel replied, leaning his head in closer, "you're missing out on your own party."

Humphrey felt anger rise again, but appeased it with a sigh and lowered his head.

"It's not my party," he replied in distain, closing his eyes and folding his ears.

"What do you mean it's not your party?" Paddy questioned with a wave of his wing, "is it not your welcome home?"

"No," Humphrey replied, "it's a pre-wedding celebration."

The two smiled.

"Well stuff me and hang me on a wall," Marcel said excitedly, "congratulations."

"Yeah," Paddy replied, "I-"

"It's not my wedding!" Humphrey snapped, causing the two to jump in alarm.

Humphrey, having realized what he had done, forced himself to calm down and lowered his head once more.

"What do you mean it's not your wedding?" Paddy asked, stepping forward.

"It's Kate's wedding, but I'm not gonna be a part of it," Humphrey replied, a hint of venom in his voice.

Marcel and Paddy turned to each other.

"But... wait... I thought-"

"I tried telling you before that she wasn't my girlfriend," Humphrey interrupted with a sigh, "she never liked me the way that I did her and I was a fool to allow myself to believe that she did."

The two were speechless, for they had not the slightest idea what to say, and for a long moment, silence filled the air save the distant murmur of the celebration down in the valley.

"I'm sorry, sir," Paddy said finally, "I didn't know."

Humphrey closed his eyes and shook his head slowly from side to side.

"Wasn't your fault," he said monotonously, "I wished so badly that she was, though."

Another silence.

"But... if she isn't marrying you... then who /is/ she marrying?" Marcel asked hesitantly.

"Some egotistical jock from the other pack," Humphrey replied bitterly, "should've seen it coming, too."

"But why?" Paddy asked perturbed.

Humphrey sighed.

"I don't know," he replied, "I don't know."

* * *

"Smile, Kate," Eve said to her daughter, nudging her shoulder with her paw, "this is a happy day for all of us."

"I know," Kate replied, "but I just..."

"Just what, sweetie," Eve asked with a cock of her head.

"I just don't really feel up for this right now," she replied with a sigh.

"Oh I see," Eve replied, "tired from your trip eh?"

Kate nodded, only telling half of a lie, for she was tired, but mainly she was distraught and wanted to distance herself from all of this for a while so that she could think. She knew this was wrong, but it was her responsibility, it was her duty to the packs to sell herself to somebody for whom she had no feelings to ensure the well-being of those around her. In doing wrong she was doing right, which was somehow supposed to make this alright, but a wrong and a right come nowhere close to making a right, especially if the thing she did wrong was hurt somebody she truly cared about in order to do right for everybody else. Sacrifices, sacrifices... always do for the other even if your own happiness, or the happiness of those you care about, was compromised, and so is how it was to be Kate, the alpha daughter of the Western Alpha Pair.

"Alright Hun," Eve said to her, stepping forward and hugging her quickly, "go get some rest. You've got a big day tomorrow."

Kate pulled away and nodded.

"Yeah," she thought bitterly, "a real big day."

"I love you mom," she said.

"Love you too sweetie," Eve replied.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

With that said, Kate turned away and began to make her way back to her den, but just as soon as she was out of sight, she sighed and shook her head.

"I'm sorry Humphrey," she mumbled, turning her head to the moon overhead.

For a matter of about five minutes, she stood inert, gazing up at the white face of the moon, then turned away, blinked the veil of tears from her eyes, and walked slowly home

* * *

"I know it's rash," Humphrey said to the two, easing himself onto his haunches and wrapping his tail around his forepaws, "but I just don't know what else to do. I can't do anything to stop this and I can't stay here where I would have to live with the constant reminder of what is and what could have never been and I will _not_ watch some eastern mutt raise the family that should have been mine or live the life that should have been mine. Leaving is my only real option."

Marcel and Paddy turned to each other and gave quick, quizzical gazes, then turned to Humphrey once again.

"And you're sure this is what you want?" Marcel asked him.

Humphrey nodded, though he still seemed indecisive about his decision, or that he was still trying to convince himself that he was doing the right thing.

"Then we can't stop you," Marcel replied flatly.

Humphrey only nodded, lowering his head.

"So when do you plan to leave?" Paddy asked slowly.

"Just as soon as the next train comes," he replied.

"Tomorrow morning," Marcel said distantly, "ten o'clock."

Humphrey nodded and rose to his feet.

"Then ten it is," he said, and without another word disappeared into the void of the night.

**And with that, we conclude chapter 3. Hope you liked it, and for thosunwholesome have read In The Negative prepare for an update on that later this afternoon or evening or night or morning depending on where you live... Uh... let's just say prepare for the update within the next 4-5 hours or so. There, I think that ought to have covered it. Anyway. I'm done here. MTOW out. **


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